Lubricating apparatus



Feb. 21, 1939.

c, A. FINE 2,147,835

LUBRICATING APPARATUS Filed June 14, 1935 2 Sheets-Sheet l Feb. 21, 1939. c. A. FINE LUBRICATING APPARATUS 2 SheetsPSheot 2 Filed June 14, 1955 )Haug-M 32%@ ,si As Patented Feb. 21, Y1939 LUBRICATIN G APPARATUS Charles A. Fine, Chicago, Ill., assignor to Stewart- Wa'rner Corporation, of Virginia.

Chicago, Ill., a corporation Application June 14, 1935, Serial No. 26,572

1 Claim.

cant tight connections with lubricant receiving 5 fittings.

It is an object of my invention to provide an improved adapter for high pressure lubricating systems, by which the successive connection of a high pressure lubricant supply to the lubricant receiving fittings will be greatly facilitated.

Other objects will appear from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is an elevation of a lubricant compresscr, its discharge hose, coupler, and adapter, shown connected to a lubricant receiving fitting carried by a bearing, the latter being shown in section;

Fig. 2 is a similar view on an enlarged scale, showing `only the coupler, adapter, and fitting, portions of the coupler and adapter being shown in central longitudinal section;

Fig. 3 is an elevation of a modified form of the adapter of my invention showing it connected to a lubricant receiving tting threaded in a bearing, thelatter being shown in section;

Fig. liis a central longitudinal Isectional view of the adapter shown in Fig. 3; and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary plan view taken on the line 5--5 of Fig. 3.

The adapter of my invention may be used in any high pressure lubricating system and in Fig. l, for, purposes of illustration, is shown connected in such systemcomprising a lubricant compressor i8, a dischargel hose I2, a swivel- I4, an extension pipe i6 threaded in a suitable handle I8,"

a coupler 28, and adapter 22. The adapter 22 is shown as connected with a lubricant receiving ittng 24 of the type customarily referred to as a by virtue of theA fact thatit has a' "pin fitting pin extending transversely therethrough. The pin fitting 24is threaded into the oil hole of a bearing 26.

The compressor I8 may be. of any suitable conl5 struction, but is shown as a pneumatically operated compressor having air under pressure supplied' thereto through a hose 28, the air being controlled Vby a valve lever 88 pivoted to the handle-32. The compressor also includes'a lubriiD cant reservoir 84 and a ley-pass pipe 36 for relieving the lubricant pressure in the discharge `line i2; inasmuch as thedetails of the compres-v sor vform no part 'of my present invention, fur-- ther detailed description .thereof'rwill be omitted.

best shown in, Fig. 2, the coupler 28 commovement of 'y .through the union 54 vnection with the pin itting 24.- ty'pe. are shown in the patent prises a sleeve 38 within which jaws 48 are posi- 'tioned. The jaws 48 and sleeve 38 have interengaging conical surfaces 42 and the jaws 48.are pressed outwardly from the sleeve 38 by the pressure of the lubricant. A nozzle member 44 is likewise pressed by lubricant pressure against the annular edge of the end face of a fitting 46 and a sealing member 48 is pressed by lubricant pressure to make a sealing contact with the end face of the tting 46 at the edge surrounding its inlet opening. The jaws 48 engage behind the head 58 of the fitting. The details of the coul. .er 28 are fully illustrated and described in the copending application of Ernest W. Davis and Lynn A. Williams, Jr., Serial No. 3,712, nled January 28, 1935 which has matured into Patent No. 2,061,- 062, dated Nov. 17, 1936.

The fitting 86 is threaded into an extension 52 which in turn is threaded to a union 54 which forms part of a swivel 56. 'Ihe extension 52 has an annular groove 58 formed in the external surface thereof to receive a C spring 68. A sleeve 62 is longitudinally slidable upon the extension 52, outward movement thereof being limited by the engagement of a shoulder 64 on the sleeve with a complementary shoulder 66 formed on the extension 52. The spring 68 presses outwardly against the inner surface of the sleeve 62, thereby frictionally to hold it in any position to which it may be moved.

In Fig. 2 the sleeve is shown in its rightmost position, in which position its outer end encompasses a substantial portion of the sleeve 38 of the coupler 28, and in this position maintains the coupler 28 in axial alignment with the itting The coupler 28 can be disconnected from the tting only by swinging it angularly relative to the'tting and since such angular swinging l the coupler relative to the fitting is prevented by the sleeve 82, the coupler is maintained locked to the fitting whenever the sleeve ls in the position shown in Fig. 2. 'To enable the operator to disengage the coupler 28 from the fitting 46, the sleeve 82 is moved to the left (Fig. 2) to the position in which it is shown in dotted lines in Fig. 2, in which position it no longer engages the sleeve 38 of the coupler 28 and the latter-is therefore free tobesWung-out oi" axial alignment with thetting 48 and thereby disconnect the couplerirom the iltting.'v

The extension '52 is shown as beingconnected pler 22 of a form adapted to make a sealed con- Couplers of this to A. Gullborg and swivel 58'with a -cout lubricant receiving iittings.

2 arnese No. 1,307,734, dated June 24, 1919. If desired a different type of coupling could be connected to the swivel It and thus the adapter conditioned for supplying lubricant to difierent types of lubricant receiving nttings.

Inasmuch as the sleeve l2 is held by the spring BU in the position to which it is adiusted, acci,- dental disconnection of the coupler 20 from the fitting will be prevented so that the person using the grease gun need give the coupler 2l no further attention but can use the coupler 22 in the same manner as if it were directly connected to the discharge hose I2. By merely sliding the sleeve 62 inwardly relative to the extension l2 (to the left, Fig. 2) the coupler 20 may readily be disconnected from the fitting 48, and then be used for lubricating directly bearings equipped with lubricant receiving fittings of the type exemplified by the fitting 46. It will be understood that in the lubrication of automobiles it is very desirable to be able quickly and easily to convert a lubricant compressor equipped for the lubrication of one type of fitting to the lubrication of a different type of fitting, since diierent automobiles are equipped with different types of It is also essential that the change be capable of being made very rapidly and without the loss of lubricant. The adapter of my invention satisfies all of' these requirements.

In Figs. 3, 4, and 5 I have illustrated a modified form of my invention for use in the lubrication oi machinery equipped with headed type fittings where such iittings are located in relatively inaccessible places such that they cannot be reached by the coupler 20.

In this modified form of my invention parts which are similar to those previously described in connection with Figs. l and 2 are identified with similar reference characters. The extension 52 has a fitting 10 threaded therein, the fitting being of the same type as that used in the construction shown in Fig. 2 except that it is provided with a spring pressed check valve 12. If desired,

Q however, this check valve may be omitted. The

extension 52 is secured to a body 14 by a union 16. The body 14 has a coupling sleeve 18 threaded at one end thereof, this sleeve enclosing the coupling jaws and sealing members similar to or identical with those described as part of the coupler 20. The end of the body 14 opposite the coupler 18 has a recess 80 formed therein which is adapted to receive an identifying marker 82. As shown in Fig. 5, this marker bears the legend Fluid, thus indicating the kind of lubricant with which the adapter is to be used.

It will be understood that in a modern service station for automobiles it is customary to render what is termed Specialized Lubrication", that is, each of the different types of bearings is lubricated with a grease or oil especially suited to such typer of bearing, and the marker 82 serves as a means to aid readily in identifying the adapter to be used with each of the diierent lubrlcant compressors containing the different types of lubricants. 1f such identifying marking were not provided the service station attendant might inadvertently connect an adapter, passageways oi' which contain a chassis grease, to a compressor delivering an oil and thus deliver the chassis grease from the passageways in the adapter to the bearing. The markers 02 are in the form of pressed sheet metal cups which fit frictionally in the recesses 80 of the adapters.

By means of the adapter shown in Figs. 3, 4, and 5, bearings which would not be readily accessible with the use of the coupler 2li, may be easily reached. `The sleeve 62 forms a rigid connecting member between the coupler 20 and the extension 52 so that the coupler 18 may be readily attached to and disconnected from a lubricant receiving fitting, using the coupler 20 and sleeve 62 as a handle.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that variations may be made in the form of my invention without departing from the basic principles thereof, and I desire to include within the scope of my invention all such modiiications and variations as will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

In a high pressure lubricating system, the combination oi a coupler, an adapter comprising an extension having a fitting at one end thereof, said tting being readily engageable with said coupler to make a lubricant tight connection therewith, the connection being of a. type in which disconnection is effected readily by swinging the coupler relative to the axis of the fitting, a sleeve carried by said adapter and slidable on said extension said sleeve having an internal diameter substantially the same as the outer diameter of said coupler and constructed and arranged when moved to one position to embrace said coupler and hold it in axial alignment with said fitting thereby to prevent disconnection of the coupler and fitting, means to hold said sleeve in any one of a plurality of positions to which it may be moved relative to said extension, and means connected to said extension for making a detachable lubricant-tight connection with a lubricant recelving iltting.

CHARLES A. FINE. 

